It’s been several months now since we’ve heard anything official about TNT and Warner Bros.’ attempt at bring the classic DC Comics series The Teen Titans to the small screen, now known simply as The Titans. But recently casting has begun on the pilot, which has given us a first look at just who the lineup of the team will be for their first ever live action incarnation. Today on Nerdist News, Jessica Chobot is blowing the lid off of who exactly you can expect to see when the show debuts.
Nightwing
Dick Grayson is actually Robin in this iteration (at least at the start), but has left working alongside the Batman. Now a young adult, he is working as a detective in Boston. This is strikingly similar to the original Nightwing solo comic from the early ’90s from writer Chuck Dixon, in which Dick Grayson became a police officer in Gotham’s neighboring city of Bludhaven. The character of Dick Grayson, either as Robin or Nightwing, is one of the most iconic in all of comics, and has been very ill-served by recent live action incarnations. His portrayal in the Joel Schumacher Batman films was dismal, and he wasn’t even mentioned in the Christopher Nolan films (no, John “Robin” Blake doesn’t count). This could be a great opportunity for Dick Grayson to finally get some proper attention.
Barbara Gordon
Although never a member of any incarnation of the Teen Titans in the comics, she did have a long-standing romantic relationship with Dick Grayson, which makes her inclusion here make sense. In this version, she was once known as Batgirl, but now finds herself in a wheelchair. She’s the team’s resident computer hacker, reflecting the character’s time as Oracle in the comics. (That being said, she’s not referred to as Oracle in the pilot, but that could change.) There were many, many fans of this version of the character, who was unceremoniously sent away to limbo after the New 52 restored Barbara Gordon as Batgirl, so there should be many fans who are happy this version of Barbara will continue to exist somewhere.
Hawk and Dove
There have been several incarnations of the duo known as Hawk and Dove, who both have a long-standing tradition of being members of the Titans in the comics. The original Hawk and Dove were brothers Don and Hank Hall. Each brother was gifted with powers from the Lord of Order and Chaos. Don died during the Crisis on Infinite Earths, and was replaced with Dawn Granger as the new Dove, and eventually started dating Hawk. This seems to be the version they’re going with for the new series, as Hawk and Dove are set to be a romantic pairing. Also expect these two to have the biggest change from their classic comic book looks.
Raven
In the comics, it was Raven, daughter of the inter-dimensional demon Trigon, who brought the New Teen Titans together to fight her father. An empath as well as a teleporter, Raven always had to keep her emotions in check, or else she could accidentally unleash her demonic side. In the Geoff Johns’ run of Teen Titans in the early 2000s, he gave her the name Rachel Roth, which is how she is referred to in this pilot script.
Starfire
The alien princess Koriand’r from the planet Tamaran was one of the most popular characters introduced in the New Teen Titans comics of the ’80s, as well as on the Teen Titans animated series from the early 2000’s. She (as well as Raven) only appear as buttons at the very end of the episode, but considering her romance with Dick Grayson in the comics was a big part of it, expect some kind of love triangle with Nightwing and Barbara Gordon should the series go forward.
Not included in the pilot script are Beast Boy/Changeling or Cyborg, two popular members from both the 1980s team and the cartoon series. Of course, if the pilot goes to series, either could show up later (although Warner Brothers seems intent on keeping Cyborg a member of the Justice League only, so his chance aren’t quite as good). Also unknown are whether or not this will be set in the same TV universe as The Flash and Arrow. If it is, we could see eventual appearances from Arsenal and possibly even Barry Allen (or a newly introduced Wally West).
Source: Nerdist
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